Maya Angelou dies: ten of the author's best-loved quotes

The much-loved American poet, author and activist has died at the age of 86

LAST UPDATED AT 15:35 ON Wed 28 May 2014

American author, poet and civil rights activist Maya Angelou has died at the age of 86, her literary agent, Helen Brann, said on Wednesday.

Also a professor, singer and dancer, Angelou was perhaps best-known for her 1969 memoir I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings. In 2011, President Barack Obama awarded her with the Medal of Freedom, the country's highest civilian honour.

Her poem On the Pulse of the Morning, written for US President Bill Clinton's first inauguration, managed to sell a million copies in the US.

Angelou was known for her wit and her wisdom. Here are ten of her best-loved quotes:

"We delight in the beauty of the butterfly, but rarely admit the changes it has gone through to achieve that beauty."

"Courage is the most important of all the virtues because without courage, you can't practice any other virtue consistently."